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11 July 2007

Wednesday Cool/Kewl

It's supposed to be insanely hot here today (near 100), which wouldn't be a big thing if this part of the world believed in central air conditioning. The fact is, there really aren't that many days where it's needed...so we just have to suffer on those days. We are fortunate enough here not to have a reputation for being stoic. I plan to take advantage of that and whine. A lot. If you're sweltering too, here are some suggestions for distracting yourself from the evil sun.

The Education Wonks have a fine Carnival this week. For those of you keeping score at home, this is the 127th edition---and it's still looking fresh as a daisy.

A few days ago, I wrote about the research-practice gap. Interestingly enough, so has Greg over at LeaderTalk. He writes about being inspired to do something about it as well as his plan to get things moving in his world. He's going to be an effective principal: a rebel with a cause. This is a fantastic post to read and think about today.

Prefer to go shopping? Let me recommend Pencil Things to you. Yes, in real life, I'm very low tech. Happiness is a cedar-based pencil with a very long sharp point. This place is nirvana if you enjoy anything pencil related. I love these little sharpeners, for example. I have to say that this seller is one of the best and easiest to work with that I have ever encountered. I placed my last order on the 4th of July...it shipped that same day...and I had things in hand by Monday.

Finally, I made this picture my new desktop wallpaper:

Photo AP File

I wish I could give proper credit for it (it was found on Yahoo! News and they only credited AP). Even if the moias of Easter Island didn't make the final cut for the Seven (New) Wonders of the World, they're still darned fascinating to me. Makes me ponder my own future travel plans. I have so much left to explore.

Poking around on-line, it appears that "moai" can be used in either a singular or plural sense. Now, if you really want to have something to keep you awake, think of an example (or three) from the English language (or French or Spanish...why limit yourself) that can serve such functions.

Hmmm - well, it's much too easy in French, since no plural s is added to any male noun that ends in 's'. But English... how about "cactus" or "octopus"? Although the plurals are technically cacti and octopi, I believe the singular forms are also acceptable as plurals. Then there's "deer". That's all I've got right now. Whew! Glad I didn't read this until the morning! ;-)